See You Next Tuesday: Japan Special

Welcome to this weeks latest instalment of S.Y.N.T (not to be confused with anything else!) where we fill you in on just some of the things that have caught our eye in the office over the past seven days. Inspired by our recent trip to Tokyo, this week we're turning Japanese; expect baby dinosaurs, melty kisses and snow kitty's. 1. INTERNET SENSATIONS: You and me in a photo booth.  If you think putting a filter on your photo on Instagram is special then you should see the lengths that the Japanese go to in creating that perfect web ready image. We in particular had fun sampling their favourite photo booth phenomena Purikura. Not your average passport photo booth, they have editing suites that could keep you entertained for hours on end enlarging your eyes and covering your photos in cute pictures of hearts and kittens. If you want to have a go from the comfort of your own bedroom, we recommend downloading the PhotoWonder app. Warning: it's pretty addictive. 2. WINDOW SHOPPING: Little Foot. Gone are the days where people ask you if you're a dog person or a cat person, now people will also be wanting to know if you're a dinosaur person. At least that's the case if you check out this life-like dino robot we had the pleasure of meeting at Shinjuku's famous Robot Restaurant. This adorable looking fella better known as Pleo can walk, eat, play tug of war and even loves cuddles. You can get your very own live-in Camarasaurus for a £300 sum, maybe check that he won't grow adult size before you make an order... 3. FOOD FAVOURITES: Melt in your mouth. If there is one thing that really stood out for us in Tokyo then it had to be the amazing array of food we sampled on a daily basis; from sushi to katsu curry to Kobe beef. Unfortunately bringing food like this back wouldn't make it through customs but one treat we did get to bring back for our friends in London were Meiji's Meltykiss chocolates. Available in cube or pyramid form, these mini chocolates quite literally melt in your mouth and are best accompanied with a hot cup of coffee. You can also pick up a box in all 7 Eleven stores making them a quick and easy Valentine's present just in time for this week. 4. MEDIA MATTERS: No business like snow business. While we have been busy not enjoying our daily down pour in the UK, Japan have been celebrating their annual Sapporo Snow Festival. One of Japan's largest winter events, the festival attracts over 2 million visitors who travel down to view hundreds of snow statues and ice sculptures including famous people and icons like Hello Kitty above snapped by our pal Yoppy. You can also enjoy a ride down a snow slide - sounds a lot easier than snow boarding! We better get our ice skates on and book tickets for next year.